Carpathian Biosphere Reserve condemns jeeping in Lake Gereshaska, says lake not under its jurisdiction
After a video showing a jeep driving across Lake Gereshaska in the Svydovets massif sparked public outrage, the Carpathian Biosphere Reserve clarified that the lake is not part of the reserve. However, it strongly condemned the activity.
The Carpathian Biosphere Reserve has responded to the public outcry following a video that showed a jeep crossing Lake Gereshaska in the Svydovets mountain range. The reserve stated that the lake is not part of its territory and is not under its management. The lake is located within the Yasiynia community of Rakhiv district, Zakarpattia Oblast.
The reserve noted that similar incidents of off-road vehicles entering high-altitude lakes are recorded every year. Although Lake Gereshaska does not belong to the reserve, its staff regularly conduct educational work emphasizing the complete inadmissibility of such actions, which ruthlessly destroy fragile and unique mountain water bodies.
Lake Gereshaska has been a hydrological landmark of local significance since 1984. The jeep seen in the video is likely part of a jeep tour, which are extremely popular from the Dragobrat ski resort. The number of vehicles on these tours is not regulated, and there is no known punishment for creating new off-road tracks in the Ukrainian Carpathians.
